As Hurricane Harvey begans to bear down on Texas, thousands of vacationers aboard cruise ships were left stuck at sea until the storm passed. Questions: 1. Approximately how many vacationers were stuck at sea near Galveston, Texas? 2. If guests wished to terminate their cruise, where were they taken to dock? 3. If you were… Read more »

Puerto Rico has been facing huge debts and population loss for some time. However, in a historic move that will likely trigger a fierce legal battle, the island territory declared bankruptcy. Questions: 1. According to the article, what were the main debts it listed in its filing? 2. How many jobs and what amount of… Read more »

According to the Associated Press and USA Today, government investigators looking into how Google pays its employees have accused the tech giant of shortchanging women doing similar work to men. Questions: 1. What are some of the claims? 2. Which branch of government filed the lawsuit? 3. Google has said it has turned over some… Read more »

The Pink Tax, so named because of the color of products directly marketed to girls and women, refers to the price difference for female-specific products compared with the gender-neutral goods or those marketed to men. Questions: 1. On average, how much more do women and girl’s products cost as compared to similar products for men… Read more »

Healthcare companies have increasingly offered cash promotions and discounts to users who provide their Fitbit data. But could this be used by insurers rather than to improve customer health? Questions: 1. In what types of negative ways could this data be used, according to the article? 2. What issues in Congress could promote the negative… Read more »

Even though Wall Street and the financial press have been harping for decades on the retirement savings crisis, this article provides some additional perspectives. Questions: 1. According to the Manpower Group, what percentage of millennials plan to work until they die (as their solution to retirement)? 2. Why do so many millennials have such a… Read more »

If you have been up late watching TV, you might have seen the Infomercial for a Minnesota company that sells My Pillow, a patented open-cell, poly-foam design created by inventor Michael J. Lindell. This staple of late-night TV infomercials has sold about 18 million pillows since 2005. However, a recent lawsuit successfully argued My Pillow… Read more »

According to the Washington Post, the U.S. online retailer, Amazon, will try out teams that log 30-hour work weeks. But here is the catch: employees will receive the same benefits as those putting in 40-hour weeks, but get three-quarters of the pay. Questions: 1. Will this change be company-wide? 2. Last year the New York… Read more »

This week a partnership between Amazon and Wells Fargo was announced. Members of Amazon Prime Student will receive a 0.5 percent interest rate discount on student loans taken out through Wells Fargo’s Education Financial Services. Questions: 1. Why are financial advisors wary of the deal? 2. How much did the Washington Post calculate a student… Read more »

According to Stacy Cowley of the New York Times, only around 1.5 percent of self-employed taxpayers are audited each year. Audits are not random, because the IRS has a secret algorithm that calculates how likely each taxpayer is to have unreported income. In looking at sizing up the honesty of small-business owners, the Taxpayer Advocate… Read more »